


wasteland, baby! (i'm in love)

by directorscut



Category: The Boyz (Korea Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-01
Updated: 2019-08-01
Packaged: 2020-07-28 17:21:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,346
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20067718
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/directorscut/pseuds/directorscut
Summary: It seems like a menial task, grocery shopping—you make a list, get whatever’s on it, make add-ons along the way—and objectively, it’s as simple as it sounds.Grocery shopping for another person on the other hand, namely Heo Hyunjoon, is an entirely different story. A memory crosses Juyeon’s mind and he’s taken back to the time he accidentally bought almond milk instead of soy and set off an allergic reaction even Hyunjoon didn’t know he had.In short, Hyunjoon adds important details to his grocery lists that Juyeon never bothers paying attention to. Except maybe, the little hearts.





	wasteland, baby! (i'm in love)

The shiny linoleum tiles lined up on the floor beneath Juyeon’s beaten Chuck Taylors felt more intimidating than they were comforting. For someone standing on solid ground, it sure felt like he was poised at the edge of a 5 meter springboard. He shudders at the thought before turning his attention to the piece of paper in his hand. 

_ eggs _

_ bread (wholemeal) _

_ milk (soy unless u want me 2 die) _

_ lucky charms (JUST the marshmallows!!!!!) _

_ a whole watermelon (pre-sliced gives u salmonella :O) _

_ ♡ love u ♡ _

It seems like a menial task, grocery shopping—you make a list, get whatever’s on it, make add-ons along the way—and objectively, it’s as simple as it sounds. 

Grocery shopping for another person on the other hand, namely Heo Hyunjoon, is an entirely different story. A memory crosses Juyeon’s mind and he’s taken back to the time he accidentally bought almond milk instead of soy and set off an allergic reaction even Hyunjoon didn’t know he had, ending up with a trip to the ER. 

In short, Hyunjoon adds important details to his grocery lists that Juyeon never bothers paying attention to. Except maybe, the little hearts. 

_ Walking in Thyme Grocer _was relatively empty and to no one’s surprise either. It was 7 a.m. on a Sunday, one was either stupid or dumb to be up so early on a day specifically designed for lie-ins. Juyeon thinks he falls somewhere in the middle. 

The past week had consisted of Hyunjoon trying his hardest to survive the final leg of a ruthless semester Juyeon’s already done with. Juyeon doesn’t see the harm in carrying out chores they usually do together in an attempt to lessen the burden on his boyfriend’s shoulders. Which brings him to where he currently was—the grocer—at an ungodly hour after successfully annoying Hyunjoon enough to get their grocery list written down on paper while in a sleep induced stupor. 

Juyeon stares at the single watermelon on the list longer than necessary, shrugs, and makes a beeline for the shopping carts lined haphazardly by the entrance of the grocery store. 

A staff with the tag _Store Manager:_ _Jacob _greets him with a smile and tells him to have fun shopping, to which Juyeon replies with a “Thank you, you too.” before hauling his ass to the closest empty aisle to scream into the palms of his hands. Juyeon only notices the cereal boxes lining up the shelves after recovering from his 10 second breakdown. 

He spots the last box of Lucky Charms Marshmallows on the top most shelf and is for once, grateful for his 5’11” build—or as Hyunjoon likes to call it, his _ lanky noodle bod_. Juyeon inspects the expiry date, something Hyunjoon always reminds him to do, and places it in the cart after making sure it had at least another 3 years of shelf life. Juyeon catches himself and almost laughs there and then. It wasn’t going to last a day in the hands of Heo Hyunjoon. 

Juyeon goes about crossing more stuff off his list and soon enough, finds himself slowly making his way towards the produce section in hopes of getting Hyunjoon’s watermelon. He spots a few ladies dispersed around the area and heads straight for the fruit display, almost ramming his shopping cart into an employee balancing two watermelons on his shoulder. 

“Hey man, watch it! It’s too early to be crushing watermelons—” The guy mutters, gently placing the melons into a previously empty display slot. “—trust me. Been there, done that.” He turns around with a satisfied smile after deeming the area clear of possible catastrophic watermelon disasters. 

“Sorry, I saw the lady over there eyeing them and panicked.” Juyeon apologizes, throwing a glance towards aforementioned lady who was currently scoffing. Or maybe choking on her dentures, Juyeon can’t tell. 

“Huh. You must really love watermelon,” The guy mumbles—more to himself than to Juyeon—before grinning and extending an arm. “M’ Son Youngjae. Part-time produce clerk, full-time watermelon enthusiast at your service.” 

Juyeon shakes the other’s hand awkwardly and wishes he was at home making pancakes for Hyunjoon instead of making watermelon acquaintances. 

“Juyeon. Hey listen, I really need help getting the best watermelon. You think you can help out?” 

The corners of Youngjae's mouth twitch upwards. He nods, clearly eager to assist. 

“You don’t have that much of a choice sadly, we’ve only got two whole melons in today. Unless you’re willing to go for pre-sliced?” 

“_NO!_ _No no no_, I either get them whole or I don’t.” 

Juyeon coughs out a nervous laugh, remembering the note on Hyunjoon’s list. 

“Well damn, okay, a whole watermelon it is then.” Youngjae puts his hands up in mock defeat before slapping a hand on the larger out of the two watermelons. 

“Nice. This one’s good!” He picks it up and places it in Juyeon’s shopping cart carefully. 

How he knew by slapping the fruit, Juyeon has absolutely no idea, but he wasn’t about to ask. 

“Dude, you’re literally my savior. Thanks a lot.”

“No problem, you know who to look for the next time you swing around for watermelons!” Youngjae chirps, waving as Juyeon walks away. 

_ Eliminate all possible threats of a Salmonella infection, check. _

* * *

Apart from the soft buzz of some obscure band playing on the radio, the apartment is relatively quiet when Juyeon gets back. He places his house keys in the trinket tray by the door and heads straight for the kitchen, juggling a watermelon and two shopping bags in his hands. 

“You look like you haven’t slept in a decade.”

Hyunjoon places the cat-shaped mug he was previously holding down on their kitchen island and rolls his eyes. 

“I had plenty last night, sunshine,” Hyunjoon yawns. He places a chaste kiss on Juyeon’s cheek before helping him with the shopping bags. 

They move about the kitchen in silence, occasionally bumping into each other as they store the items from Juyeon’s grocery expedition. Juyeon leaves the milk carton and box of marshmallow on the kitchen island, figuring Hyunjoon would want to eat them right away. 

“Oh, will there be any more trips to the Emergency Room this time?” Hyunjoon latches onto his boyfriend’s back when he spots the milk carton, nuzzling the back of Juyeon’s neck. 

Juyeon laughs—partly because he was easily ticklish—and turns around to place both hands on either side of Hyunjoon’s face, effectively squishing it. 

“You’re never going to let me live that down, are you?” 

“I had to get three shots because of you,” Hyunjoon pouts and pulls Juyeon closer by his sweater. 

“But the nurse gave you a lollipop after! I see that as a win.” Juyeon shrugs. 

Hyunjoon shuts his eyes as if recollecting the memory from the depths of his brain and smiles in defeat. 

“Fair enough.”

A beat passes. Juyeon notices Hyunjoon fumbling with a loose thread on the frayed sleeve of his pyjamas.

“You okay?”

“Yeah, just—thank you for everything,” Hyunjoon pauses, and gently caresses Juyeon’s cheek. “You know I’m not good with words—hell, I don’t think either of us are. But, thank you for taking care of me.”

“I love you.” Hyunjoon adds as an afterthought, burying his face in Juyeon’s chest. 

“Wow, all it took was for me to go grocery shopping? I should really do this more often.” 

_ Thump. _

Juyeon fakes a wounded look and rubs his chest, “Ouch!Okay, okay.” 

“—I love you too Hyunjoon, and I’ll _ always _ have your back.” 

He crosses his fingers that are now resting on Hyunjoon’s hip and softly kisses Hyunjoon’s forehead.

“Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” Juyeon mumbles with his chin resting on Hyunjoon’s head.

“Lucky charms?” Hyunjoon quips, already taking a step back with a grin on his face. 

“Lucky charms.” 

Juyeon doesn’t know what he did—what watermelons he saved or what cats he took care of—in his past life to have deserved Heo Hyunjoon in this lifetime, but Juyeon hopes the boy holding his hand will stay by his side, in this lifetime and the next. 

**Author's Note:**

> walking in thyme grocer ha ha
> 
> also.. i miss hyunjoon so much
> 
> thank you for reading eeek. please tell me what you think about it in the comments i need validation to function properly T_T


End file.
